Today In History, April 30, 1945--Adolf Hitler Kills Himself
Today In History, April 30th, 1945-- Hitler Kills Himself--
Today is the anniversary of the death by suicide of Adolf Hitler and his wife Eva Braun, with both using Cyanide, but him taking the extra precaution of shooting himself in the mouth. As the historically minded are no doubt aware, this day effectively ended the European War.
One thing which gets lost in that day's narrative is that they were not alone in this act of suicide. Hitler's most loyal remaining supporters, Propaganda Minister Josef Goebbels, and his wife Magda also committed suicide, after murdering their six children aged four through thirteen with Cyanide. They did not want their family to live in a world without their "Fûhrer." (Likewise, Hermann Göring later took Cyanide while on trial at Nuremberg, as had several other top Nazis previously).
One might ask why I would even mention this grotesque aspect of that day. It is a fair question, though most shudder at the mere thought of such horror. I believe that it is central to our understanding of what we are up against now, which is, for the most part, mislabeled as "politics".
Trump's MAGA movement long ago ceased being a political movement, notwithstanding it's ongoing hostile takeover of the GOP. Like the Nazis, it is a quasi-religious cult, whose members have surrendered their personal sense of identity and their very lives to the control of one man, who in exchange promises them "freedom." Freedom, that is, from "Them." Them being all of us not in the cult who reject it's Leader.
Like every other example of religious based suicide cults, the prospect of ascendancy to the top of the human pyramid, as an "elect," or self-styled super-human through the bond between the cult and it's members, is their ticket to immortality. Those who are the hard core devotees are prepared to die in whatever manner The Leader sees fit, and will do so obediently.
This is, to me, the central aspect of what our media and pundits continue to ignore, as they jabber away about how Trump is weaker now, losing his grip on a divided GOP, tied down with legal cases, facing public exposure as a criminal seditious conspirator by the January 6th Committee, and will possibly not even run again. You have all read and heard these nonsensical assessments in the media, even from those who claim to oppose him.
So, I feel the need to step in with a reminder that our American Press wrote the same deluded and stupid things regarding Adolf Hitler, 97 years ago, after he was convicted and jailed for Treason following the "Munich Putsch" coup attempt. America's intelligentsia was self-blinded by their ideological and cynical outlook, that Hitler was just another ambitious politician and demagogue, who throughout history have come and gone. Such an example is this "blast from the past" in the New York Times edition attached below, dated December 21, 1924, published on the day Hitler walked out of jail paroled as a free man after a rigged trial and sentencing. The Times thus announced to the world that "Hitler had been tamed," had learned his lesson and would rejoin respectable political society.
The writer, like many others, refused to see that Hitler and his movement were not merely politically extreme, but were an actual death cult. They dismissed the prospect of this cult and it's leader ever achieving absolute power in Germany because they misread the German people, the impact of the Great War and world Depression, the awful consequences of the humiliating post World War treaty and it's resulting hyperinflationary economic collapse. They. Misread. Everything. Just like they have been here for the last seven years. For those who believe that indicting and convicting Trump will solve our MAGA problem, consider that Hitler's conviction had the opposite intended result. It increased his following and made them more extreme.
The media today, outside of the Trumpworld circle of fiction and mass psychosis, continues it's lame attempt to lessen Trump's grip on his followers by "fact checking" him. You hear every day about Trump's lies, (42,000 of which he told from The White House, according to CNN) including his "biggest" lie about the stolen election. They believe that exposing these lies will liberate Trump supporters from their brainwash program. And they miss the point entirely. Trump's supporters love him 'because' they are narcissistic aggressive liars just like him, and he, by lying constantly, validates their life of lies, conspiracies, and paranoia. Trump fulfills them, makes them feel empowered. The more you attack Trump's lies, the more you help consolidate the loyalty and control of his cult. It helps him to recruit his base to more extreme views with more insularity, not to liberate or dissuade them.
In reality, this adds up to the fact that as members of a potential mass based suicide cult, his hard core will give their lives for him. Not with kool-aid, not with handguns, but with truckbombs. This is a growing terrorist movement of religious fanatics, determined to "accelerate" race war and "End Times," members of a Trumpian "Nazified" pseudo-Christian racist doomsday cult. It is no longer about politics. We all saw this close up on January 6th, and are still dealing with the shock and denial which resulted. True or not?
You all suspect and fear that this is true, and are afraid to think it or say it. Myself, I will always in these matters envision the worst, and try to plan ahead for it to prevent it. I believe I can try to make a difference by getting the attention of people who influence the President and Merrick Garland. They are the ones who can fix what I'm worried about, the MAGA problem, so that is my track. I have no idea if what I'm doing will have an impact.
And on an anniversary such as today, I have no interest in engaging in academic posturing, or being concerned with my writing style. My style is like a machete, which is meant to help you cut through the weeds. I took the New York Times piece below out of my archive to burn this piece of history into people's consciousness, so that their reading of the day's news is attuned to what is both being said and not being said, or mistated. You all deserve better than what you are getting.
